File contents not being read in nodejs program

Question

I have a file temp.js that contains text as below:

module.config = {
  key1 : 'value1',
  key2 : 'value2',
  key3 : ['abc','def']

}

I am reading the file as below:

fs.readFile('/temp.js', function(err,fileContents) {
   console.log(fileContents);
});

on the output I am getting values as below:

<Buffer 6d 6f .....
...>

What am i missing here ?

You're reading the hex contents of the file; it's being read as a binary rather than as a text string. Easy way to tell? In ASCII, all the lowercase letter range starts with 0x61, and the uppercase range starts with 0x41. — Parthian Shot
– Parthian Shot, Commented Jul 21, 2014 at 13:28
6d 6f are the letters m and o. I'm guessing you want to evaluate the file as Javascript, which... really isn't what you're doing, here. — Parthian Shot
– Parthian Shot, Commented Jul 21, 2014 at 13:29

user142162 · Accepted Answer · 2014-07-21 13:28:38Z

2

If no encoding is specified, then the raw buffer is returned.

Therefore, if you want a string passed to your callback, specify the encoding of the file. Example:

fs.readFile('/temp.js', {encoding: 'utf8'}, function(err, fileContents) {
   console.log(fileContents);
});

answered Jul 21, 2014 at 13:28

user142162

Sign up to request clarification or add additional context in comments.

Comments

Mritunjay · Accepted Answer · 2014-07-21 13:32:26Z

0

The file is being read but as Buffer. To read it as string you've to tell fs the encoding.

Try this

require('fs').readFile('/temp.js','utf-8', function(err,fileContents) {
   console.log(fileContents);
});

answered Jul 21, 2014 at 13:32

Mritunjay

25.9k7 gold badges57 silver badges71 bronze badges